Exam question 20marker - New media beneficial?
Item N
Sociologists disagree about the extent to which the development of the new media has been positive for society. While some point to positive features, like increased access and choice, and more power in the hands of the audience, others are concerned about the power of corporations, the risks of what might happen to individuals’ data and the danger of fake news.
Apply meterial from item N and your own knowledge, evaluate the view that new media technologies have had a beneficial impact on society.
introduction: There’s no definitive way in which we can argue new media has had beneficial or negative impacts on society, but neophiliacs may argue that new media has generally had an outstandingly positive impact on society as it has given audiences more choice and has increased accessibility to platforms and information, wherease cultural pessimists would completely disagree.
P- ‘increased access and choice’ neophiliacs would ague that it’s a posititve aspect of new media.
E- Jenkins participatory culture - people are able to interact with each other access all sort of information, Boyle changed the way media is circulated, from a supply led to demand led (cultural convergence), subscribers have the variety to chose when and what they watch/buy.
E- E-retailers/commerce amazon prime, netflix.
L- competition between e-retailers creates more variety and forces media conglomerates to produce more quality media in order to appease to their audiences demands.
E- Livingstone - new media promotes coverconsumption, media conglomerates feed into demand led supply by overproducing media of lower quality in order to meet their audinces needs but to comepete with other e-retailers.
P- ‘more power in the hands of the audience’, revitalises democracy.
E- neophiliacs argue as a result of interactivity, it has created greater opportunities for ordinary people to, influence, hold account, protest (BLM) and organise against government, jenkins participatoiry culture increases collective identity as people can participate in social movements, creating social solidarity (Durkheim).
E- Fanforums, twitter, facebook chat groups.
L- New media has given a voice to those who would otherwise go unheard, which encourages like-minded people to join together & take action.
E- Echo state chamber - cultural pessimists argue that theres issue with validity of information, and misinformation can be easily spread.
P- ‘increased choice’, new media creates greater interactivity.
E- New media technologies offer opportunities for peope to access a wide range of information and alternative interpretations/viewpoints, that aren’t in conventional mainstream media that typically have agendas behind the information (promoting a specific political party).
E- social media, twitter, facebook, advertisments, citizen journalism, news outlets.
L- Marxists argue new media promote capitalism as theres a small concentration of ownership of Media (small group of rich men/hegemonic group) they have influence over the media and the dominant ideology is still embedded within media through polysemic representations.
Neophiliacs and cultural pessimists continusly contradict each other by saying media is useful to the extent that audiences don’t really have the choice in what they consume as a result of the echo state chamber made by algorithims that media conglomerates input in order to keep their audiences satisfied, but neophiliacs would argue that this isn’t negative but impactfull as it encourages social change where like minded people are now able to come together to create social solidarity. In conclusion there are major benefits to it’s accesibility and it’s help in giving people a platform to express themselves and opinions but with anything in life there are always individuals and businesses that try to capitalise on that and try to find a gain through expressing certain views and creating media (less quality media as a result of demand led consumerism).